Preview: MSUB softball squares off with CWU in GNAC battle

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Tuesday, April 11, 2017 Preview: MSUB softball squares off with CWU in GNAC battle

Hosting the top team in the GNAC this weekend, MSUB’s softball team preps for a key GNAC series as the race towards the conference tournament reaches its apex.

BILLINGS, Mont. – Four crucial Great Northwest Athletic Conference games await the Montana State University Billings softball team this weekend, as the Yellowjackets host league opponent Central Washington University at Avitus Group Stadium.

Doubleheaders are scheduled for 1 p.m. on Friday and noon on Saturday, between a pair of teams that are in the running to make the GNAC tournament. The Wildcats enter the week No. 1 in the GNAC with an overall record of 27-7 and a conference mark of 14-2. All four games this weekend will feature live video and live statistics, available through MSUB’s Stretch Internet portal here.

“The team is really excited about getting back into conference play, and it’s nice that we get to play two of our final three series at home,” said MSUB head coach Jessica Rayman. “It is going to be a really good, competitive series (this weekend). Central Washington is going to be tough, and we just need to go out and compete.”

The ‘Jackets are in the thick of a four-team cluster that occupies spots 2-through-5 in the league standings. MSUB is 1423 overall, and an even 8-8 in GNAC play. The team is just one game back of second-place Saint Martin’s University (1612, 8-6 GNAC), and is even with fifth place Western Washington University (18-15, 7-7 GNAC).

“This series is really important for us, and I definitely think we can win some games against them,” sophomore catcher Madison Kelly commented on the Yellowjackets’ series against CWU this weekend. “Our offense, defense, and pitching staff just need to be spot on in every game, and every inning.”

The top-four teams in the regular-season standings earn a berth into the GNAC Championships, which are scheduled for May 4-6 at Saint Martin’s in Lacey, Wash. MSUB has three regular-season series remaining on its schedule, heading on the road next week for four games at Northwest Nazarene University before closing the year at home on Senior Weekend against Simon Fraser University.

A WEEK TO WORK: MSUB has been off since its six-game venture to the Tournament of Champions two weeks ago, with a bye week from league play falling last weekend. The ‘Jackets finished the TOC strong with two wins in their final three games, and were competitive in three of their losses that were all decided by just one run. MSUB enters the week as the GNAC leader in home runs with 38, and the team ranks second in both runs (311, 8.4 per game) and RBIs (201).

TRACY LOOKS TO STAY HOT: With eight hits in the six games at the TOC, junior rightfielder Heather Tracy maintained her team-leading .481 batting average, and continues to lead the GNAC in hits with 65 on the year. The total is already the fifth-best in MSUB singleseason history, and she is just eight hits shy of setting a new standard for hits in a season at MSUB. On a national scale, Tracy enters the week tied for seventh in the NCAA in total hits. She also became MSUB’s all-time steals leader, upping her three-year total to 36 and passing Jessica Frank’s mark of 35.

GNAC Career Batting Average Leaders (Minimum 200 AB) Rank Name AVG Hits AB School 1 Meghan Luebbert 0.463 139 300 CU 2 Danielle Monson 0.432 142 329 CWU 3 Kailyn Campbell 0.422 266 630 CWU 4 Jane Purdy 0.420 208 495 SU 5 Kelsie Gardner 0.418 269 643 WOU 6 Samantha Petrich 0.413 128 310 CWU 7 Kelsey Haberl 0.410 107 261 SFU 8 Sam Munger 0.406 294 724 SMU 9 Heather Tracy 0.405 171 422 MSUB 10 Kelsey Haupert 0.399 129 323 CWU

Seasons 2016-17 2009-10 2014-17 2005-08 2014-17 2010-11 2011-12 2012-15 2015-17 2010-11

ROVENS RUNNING UP CAREER CHARTS: Senior Bella Rovens sits atop MSUB’s career charts in at-bats (579), runs (148), and walks (85), and she is

Two of the top-10 hitters in GNAC history will be at Avitus Group Stadium this weekend, including Tracy of MSUB (.405 average) and Kailyn Campbell of Central Washington (.422 average).

currently No. 2 in hits with 198. She needs just two more hits to become the second player in MSUB history to reach 200, and 11 more to break the all-time record of 208 held by Terina Stacks (2006-09).

CAM CONTINUES POWER SURGE: Much like Tracy’s ascent up the single-season hits and batting average charts, fellow junior Cameron Cassinelli is posting similarly impressive numbers in the power categories. She ranks second in the GNAC in RBIs with 41, which is just 10 away from breaking the current MSUB single-season record of 50 held by Taylor Hoke (2015). Cassinelli is also tied for the team- and conference-lead in home runs with 10, and she remains tied for fourth in program history with 27 long balls in her career.

DETTLING BREAKING OUT: Posting some of her best performances both at the plate and in the circle in California, junior Megan Dettling has risen to the task of being relied on as a two-way player. Dettling drove in seven runs including her team-leading 10th home run of the year in California, and she is currently second on the team in RBIs with 37. Pitching wise, the right-hander logged three complete games in five appearances in California, allowing just seven earned runs in 25 innings while striking out 24 batters.

DEVLIN FINDING STROKE: Notching three multi-hit games in California, senior Kelsey Devlin has elevated her batting average north of .300 for the season. The senior ranks third on the team with 31 RBIs and eight home runs, and has started all 37 games for the ‘Jackets. Like Rovens, Devlin is also wrapping up a stellar four-year career at MSUB, and she is currently sixth in runs with 99 and seventh in RBIs with 99. Defensively, her 175 career assists are eighth-most in program history as well.

MSUB Career RBI Leaders Rank First Name 1 Emily Osborn 2 Kelly Parsons 3 Steph Gosselin Cameron Cassinelli 5 Aubrey Conceicao Terina Stacks 7 Kelsey Devlin 8 Taylor Hoke 9 Christy Wankel 10 Brittney Sanders

RBIs 136 130 111 111 103 103 99 94 91 89

Seasons 2012-15 2008-11 2006-09 2015-17 2012-15 2006-09 2014-17 2012-15 2003-06 2012-15

LINCOLN ADDS ANOTHER CG: Freshman left-hander Maddy Lincoln tossed another complete game in California, pushing her total on the year to 12 which is tied for the GNAC lead. None of the six runs she allowed against the Academy of Art were earned, as she nudged her season ERA below the 5.00 mark at 4.83 in a teamhigh 111 2/3 innings pitched.

Senior Kelsey Devlin is in the top-10 in MSUB history in both runs (99) and RBIs (99).

Central Washington University Wildcats Friday, April 14 – 1 PM Doubleheader Saturday, April 15 – 12 PM Doubleheader 2017 Record: 27-7, 14-2 GNAC Head Coach: Mike Larabee, 2nd season 2016 Record: 42-17, 18-10 GNAC The Wildcats are coming off just their second GNAC loss this season, a 9-0 setback against Western Washington University last week that snapped a five-game winning streak. The ‘Cats have a firm grip on the top spot in the GNAC, holding a 5.5-game lead with 12 games left on the regular-season schedule.

Four-year veteran starter Kailyn Campbell has proven herself as one of the best to ever play in the GNAC, as she currently sits No. 7 in league history in hits (266) and is No. 2 in RBIs (181). This year, the senior leads the GNAC in runs scored with 39 and is second in hits behind Tracy with 60. Her .504 batting average is the top mark in the league as well.

Twelve of CWU’s 16 hitters own a batting average north of .300, as the Wildcats lead the GNAC in hitting (.353), runs (247), RBIs (212), and stolen bases (76).

Senior Sammy Morris is also a member of the 200-hit club in the GNAC, ranking 11th in conference history with 210 knocks in her career. She is batting .351, and fellow senior Taylor Ferleman owns a .377 batting average as the duo has helped pace the Wildcats’ offense.

New to the team this year, Jacie McDaniels is following in the footsteps of her sister and former first-team all-GNAC second baseman Jill McDaniels. The junior transfer leads the team with 10 home runs, which ties her for the conference lead along with Cassinelli and Dettling of MSUB. Savannah Egbert is the team’s leader in stolen bases at a perfect 19-for-19 on the season, while also batting .341. CWU runs often and is hardly ever caught, with the team stealing 76 bases in 85 attempts (89.4 percent).

The Series: MSUB is 24-34 all-time against the Wildcats, but holds a positive 12-10 record in games played in Billings.

CWU has won five straight games, and is 6-4 in the last 10 meetings between the teams.

Last Time Out: CWU swept a four-game series in Ellensburg last year, out-scoring the ‘Jackets 38-7 in the sweep.

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